Need help with dining room

cleanfreekJanuary 16, 2013

I am struggling with color. I feel that there is to much brown. I love brown but need something else. I have a lot of "tuscan" in my house, which I do love, but would like something different for a change. I feel I am stuck because of my permanent choices. I do like a "pottery barn style." Think Modern Family "the Dunphy's house. I have a small child in the house. Pleas suggestions would be great!

Seems like your dining table should be under that chandy. Why don't you have an electrician switch out the builder ceiling fixtures for LED cans and wire to install the large decorative fixture above the table between the cans. Pick up a Tuscan color palette at the paint store. Get more colorful draperies hung floor to ceiling and reupholster your dining chairs with something colorful and more Tuscan too.

@JaymeHobbs, no I just repainted not that long ago. The wall was a darker tan and I wanted to lighten it up a bit. The dining room connects with the kitchen which has green counter tops. Yes I have to keep the sideboard there or it just sits in the garage. I like the idea of an area rug, but my child is 16mths & loves to throw food at the dog. So the tile is the easiest to clean. What color curtains?

I would go light for the drapes/like ivory. I understand the child thing totally, it's a lot harder to have area rugs with them...u can put a cheap plastic table cloth on the floor when they eat, over the rug, but it's a pain...or try to find an easily cleanable type/stain resistant. Overall, it's just alot of dark furniture in a smaller area....even an ivory table cloth would brighten it up a bit.

I would do a larger area rug and move it away from the sink. Does not nec have to be washable if you buy a Hoover Steam carpet cleaner which with a child and a pet you will find invaluable. You can clean carpet anytime the need arises. Some of their models clean tile or hardwoods too. Sucks the dirty water back up and you can flush away.

And also some area rugs can get up to 5x8 (that I have bought) that r actually machine washable! Not as big and thick as some, but at least u can keep it clean...and yes, I have burned through 2 of those steam cleaners cleaning my area rugs and rugs! Also today is the day of the $99 area rug/so if it get trashed so be it!! I really like your house and think u have done a good job with it. Your things r nice and look quality made...it isn't soooo dark either, but we can get to feeling that way easily about our stuff....I love red with dark wood...have u ever thought of adding any pops other colors here and there ? .

I don't know if u would like this idea...maybe use an ivory slip cover on your head of table chairs on each end? Or change them out for a lighter chair? Sorry about the living room pic, that was an error.

@JaymeHobbs, I have thought about color. I used to have olive green and burgundy.....everywhere! Love the warmth those colors bring, but for some reason I can't get away from blues and greens. It is hard for me to decorate tuscan with blue. It just doesn't work for me. Tuscan screams RED to me. I tried something new and need to move the mirror in the entry, but tell me what you think.I will post a picture of my living room. I have to have to whole house the same, it has to flow. I am not a tuscan in one room, modern in the next. Just can't do it. I'm not sure of the beach picture, but love the colors.

I have been eyeing a rug just like the 3rd pic at BBBeyond! Ok here's the living room. Please forgive the picture quality, and thomas the train! I can't decide on either the blue/red pillows. I also screwed up with the blue wall and will be repainting that tan like the rest of the room.

Thank you so much for all your suggestions so far! It's hard when the only other person to help favors red & paris themed stuff. While I love it my room is more traditional with glass lamps and silver. Wish I could do that here but feel the couches deserve warm colors. Keep the blue wall or paint it tan?

I guess I would leave it for now and see how things look with some blue pillows and accessories...I hear u on the traditional look..it is a lot different than the other one u are talking about! This is softer and more neutral and natural, I think.

Where do you suggest accessories at? How about the brown curtains? To heavy looking? I like the warmth they give but they feel heavy. How would you put the room together. This is something I have trying at for years! I can't move the furniture due to the tv.

You are trying to coordinate a lot of furniture in what appears to be a narrow space. How about removing the white shelving unit? It appears to be too light-weight for this room. Perhaps you could use it in another room.
Can you center the table between the curtained wall and the china cabinet?
I would add a PUNCH of color with the drapes. If you are bold, maybe plum, purple, olive, tans...or a mix of such colors? Better yet, color block with one of those colors that coordinates with the kitchen green and cream or lighter tan on top. Then I would go with a warmer tablecloth or placemats but only when you eat at the table; no table cloth when the meal is over. Let the warm wood shine!
Love the side table. But the beach print IS too light both in feel and color for Tuscan.
Be brave and have fun!

I do believe I just googled "traditional dining room", and they came up...scrolled through and picked colors I thought would be appropriate. Google that, scroll down and u will see a row of pics, click on and then when u see the pic or a similar one, click on it and it will give more info..i just tried it again.

You may try a pumpkin spice color. Maybe not as over used as red and still warm it up a bit. Try pulling the color out of your rocks and slate. That is a lot of fire places. : ) Also if possible get the bookshelf out of there. It is just a lot of tall things on the walls, but I know with little kids stuff it's hard to fit it all. I recover some chairs this year and it was much easy then I would have thought. It would make it look more custom. And for sure switching the light fixtures is a really good idea.

There is no right or wrong when you choose your colors for a Tuscan interior. This is a room I did with blue,golds and bronze...no reds or greens...and yes it is OK to go blue when you have dark green counters.